Judge named to bar panel

Third Circuit Judge Barb Crowder was appointed to be vice-chair of the ISBA Standing Committee on the Delivery of Legal Services for the 2014-2015 year by ISBA President Richard D. Felice.

Felice also appointed Crowder as a member of the Civil Practice and Procedure Section Council and the ISBA Standing Committee on Legislation for the 2014-2015 year during the association’s annual meeting.

ISBA’s Standing Committee on the Delivery of Legal Services was created to study, recommend, promote and conduct activities of the association for the delivery of legal services to the public, including legal assistance to the indigent and other methods of simplifying the systems. The committee supervises the Illinois Lawyer Referral Service. There are 15 members of the Standing Committee on the Delivery of Legal Services. As vice-chair, Crowder is responsible for planning Pro Bono Week initiatives and assisting the chair in the committee’s other activities.

The Civil Practice and Procedure Section Council has 29 members. The council’s purpose is to enhance the knowledge and professional capabilities of lawyers and to disseminate information such as proposed legislation and case law on civil practice. The goal of the committee members is to improve the civil law system. The Civil Practice and Procedure Section Council is one of the 41 section councils created by the Illinois State Bar Association that each focus on a substantive area of law, or help with the business of law.

The Standing Committee on Legislation bears the responsibility for committee execution of legislative programs. ISBA Standing Committees are authorized by the ISBA Board of Governors or the Assembly, and members of most committees are appointed by the ISBA President. The Standing Committee on Legislation has 26 members and is chaired by Paula Holderman, the immediate Past President of the ISBA.

Crowder has been a judge for more than 15 years. In addition to serving on the committees of the Illinois State Bar Association, Crowder is on the Board of Directors of the Illinois Judges Association and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Illinois Judges Foundation. She serves on the Special Supreme Court Child Custody Committee and is a chair of the Third Circuit Family Violence Prevention Council and the Third Circuit Pro Bono Committee. Crowder is a member of the Madison County Bar Association and is married to Edwardsville attorney Larry Taliana.

There are over 30,000 members of the Illinois State Bar Association. The association’s primary focus is to assist Illinois lawyers in the practice of law and to promote improvements in the administration of justice. The association engages in many activities such as proposing and shaping legislation, educating the public, and supporting the courts and the rule of law.